So, what I thought would take an hour MAX, turned into a solid 4 hour job. For some background, this is a 2006 V6 LR3 w/80k on the odo. I got it last week. I've already cleaned the MAF with some good ol' CRC MAF cleaner. It was on to the throttle body next. This is where the adventure begins...

It all starts here in the Land of Build Up:


I take one look and say, "holy ****, this is probably the cause of some rough idles I've been experiencing." Time to go to work on this puppy. Initially, I'm using some Seafoam "Top Engine" cleaner. It's working, but not as well as I hoped, so I'm thinking, "ok, lets coat this thing and put some elbow grease in." As I'm going H.A.M. pressing the spray can button, the red straw flies off, and where does it go? Yep. Straight into the oil fill hole. "Why the is that open?" you may ask. Well, in order to get the engine cover off, you have to take the oil cap off. So this is what I'm now dealing with:


"Ok, sooooo, how do I get this out..." Let the gerry rigging begin.

Retriever #1:

What we have here is a coat hanger with some duct tape, sticky out, on the end. Did this work? Well now I wouldn't be posting this if it did, would I? God no, this didn't work. Duct got covered in oil, ended up pushing the little red straw further down.

Retriever #2:

What we have here is a wet/dry vac, with a rolled up cardboard soda box covered in duct tape. Yeah, I'll suck this thing right out, right? Nope. Now I'm thinking, "OK, lets take a trip to Adv Auto Parts and get some proper tools for this."

Retriever #3:

Yep. The ol' retrieval claw. I was smiling the whole way home with this thing while feeling a sort of reverence for the straw. "You put up a good fight straw. A good fight indeed," I thought as I pulled in the driveway. Well folks, this didn't work either. Actually, it ended up pushing the straw down past whatever lubed chain is in there and out of sight.

So this is where I am now. Posting about this and Googling things like, "worst that could happen, plastic in oil reservoir." I'm scared to death to run the thing because I don't want melted plastic gumming up the works.

On the bright side, after some CRC Throttle Body cleaner, the throttle body couldn't be happier:


I mean, what are my options here? What's the worst that could happen? I doubt the straw will "flush out" due to it's shape. And I don't see any easy way to open her up and pick it out.

 

it will find a nice place to lay down in the valve cover, i would worry about a plastic straw. there a picture somewhere on here of a wrench laying in the valley pan when it was taken apart.